Caps vs. Ning 10-21-2006 Preview

Washington Capitals (2-4; 7 points) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (3-4; 6 points):
Caps Game # 7, Home Game # 4, NHL Game #110

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C. 7:05 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WTEM 980-AM. Tampa TV: Sun Sports. Radio: WDAE 620-AM. NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Tonight the Caps return home before heading out on a four game Western Conference road trip. The Caps are playing their third game in four nights and have split the two previous games 1-1 winning at home on Wednesday night vs. Florida and losing at Atlanta on Thursday night. The Ning are coming off of a 4-1 home win over the hapless Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post, Caps.com, Caps.com pdf game notes.

Open Source Intelligence:

St. Petersberg Times: Craig out, no surgery, bench talk Tampa Tribune: Denis fits, so far; leading scorer out. Ning. com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com AP Wire

What Do I Expect Tonight?:

Two of the three Caps games in four nights are at home so the Caps should have a decent amount of rest for this game. This is also a situation where their youth should serve them well. The Ning are off to a slow start and have played well in Washington ever since the 2002 playoffs. This is a tough game to project. So far the Caps have lived up to their talk about playing well vs. division opponents. Knowing that they have three days off after tonight, the Caps should put in a decent performance.

Caps Nut Official Washington Hockey.com Predict The Score Contest Entry:

Caps 5
Ning 2
Winner by Semin